Judge rules Georgia voting maps are discriminatory, must be redrawn

A federal judge struck down Georgia’s Republican-drawn congressional and state legislative maps Thursday, ruling they violated the Voting Rights Act by diluting the power of Black voters.

U.S. District Judge Steve Jones’s ruling gives the state Legislature until Dec. 8 to draw new lines before the court will step in to order its own remedial map.

Although Georgia could appeal, the decision paves the way to boost Black voting representation in the Peach State, also potentially aiding Democrats’ attempt to retake the House next year.

“After conducting a thorough and sifting review of the evidence in this case, the Court finds that the State of Georgia violated the Voting Rights Act when it enacted its congressional and legislative maps,” Jones, an Obama appointee, wrote in a 516-page opinion. 

“The Court commends Georgia for the great strides that it has made to increase the political opportunities of Black voters in the 58 years since the passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965,” he continued. “Despite these great gains, the Court determines that in certain areas of the State, the political process is not equally open to Black voters.”

Jones said a remedial map would need to include one additional majority-Black congressional district, two additional majority-Black state Senate districts and five additional majority-Black state House districts.

A spokesperson for Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr (R) said the office was reviewing the order and declined further comment.

The ruling follows a roughly two-week bench trial Jones held last month. 

Attorneys for various plaintiffs argued Georgia was required to draw additional majority-Black districts under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires voting maps to provide minority groups with equal opportunity to participate in the political process.

The plaintiffs noted the state’s Black population had grown significantly since the last redistricting cycle, arguing the map designs had not kept up.

Largely siding with those challengers, Jones specifically found that Georgia’s congressional map diluted the strength of Black voting power in west-metro Atlanta, while the state legislative maps did so in around Atlanta and Macon, Ga.

“We are thrilled that the Court struck down Georgia’s congressional and state legislative maps today and outlined a clear process by which Georgia voters will get relief before the 2024 election, whether or not Georgia’s General Assembly chooses to comply with this order,” Elias Law Group partner Abha Khanna, who represents some of the plaintiffs, said in a statement.

Rahul Garabadu, senior voting rights staff attorney at the ACLU of Georgia, which represents other plaintiffs, called the decision a victory for Georgia voters.

“In 2021, the General Assembly ignored Georgia’s diversification over the last decade and enacted a state legislative map that demonstrably diluted the voting strength of Black voters,” Garabadu said in a statement. “Today’s decision charts a path to correct that grave injustice before the 2024 election cycle. The General Assembly should now move swiftly to enact a remedial map that fairly represents Black voters.”

The case is one of several congressional redistricting battles being litigated in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in June concerning Alabama’s map.

The high court in a surprise decision preserved the current scope of the Voting Rights Act by striking down the Republican-led state’s congressional map. It ultimately led to the implementation of a map that nearly added another majority-Black district.

On similar grounds, voting rights and racial justice advocates have been challenging other Republican-drawn maps across the South in states like Louisiana and Arkansas.

Updated at 3:58 pm.